To not understand why entire government policy seems to be about one day in December

[Dishwashersaurous]

Either we are in the middle of a pandemic and restrictions on visiting and life are essential. Or they are not.

If they are then why is it even being considered to ease/stop them for one day

[BeyondMyWits]

Distraction therapy... Keep the peasants thinking about Christmas... there will be something coming that they are desperate to hide as always.

[JamieLeeCurtains]

Morale?
Government popularity? ('The Optics'.)
Ministers personally want a Xmas break with extended family?
Flogging tat in shops for 'The Economy'?

Gawd knows.

This seems like the worst of all worlds.

[flaviaritt]

Because it is fundamentally important for people to have something to look forward to, or they give up.

[user137425689631]

Because they need enough people to keep complying with restrictions until at least the spring, and there is a high risk that will not happen if there is no respite at all for Christmas.

Especially after creating an expectation that complying these last few months would at least allow people to have a Christmas.

It is frustrating but I can see why it's being considered/planned.

[Crumbleandcake]

I'm baffled by this too. But all the petulant child like responses of "I like to have a party" "but it's Christmas" "but I've had a bad year as I've had to stay at home more so I need to do something nice to cheer me up"

It's ridiculous. It's just one day out of 365. Yes it's nice, it's normally fun. I've had 38 of them before though and all being well I have a few more to come. Missing one is ok.

[TW2013]

Because Father Christmas is going to sprinkle magic dust over the whole country, the one they usually just save for schools, so no one can catch coronavirus.

[Parmavioletmum]

Because realistically they know they can't police it effectively over Christmas anyway so if in lockdown, people will break the rules anyway and then not be policed. Therefore will look like the government have failed at the punishments etc. Secondly there is likely to be an influx in January due to winter cough/cold/flu deaths anyway. This way they can also say well the increase is because we all wanted to break the lock down for Christmas. Just look at the eat out to help out. They encouraged people to get back out etc etc, then as soon as numbers increased it was the publics fault for going out too much.

[BeyondMyWits]

Because despite all the promises and false hope there has been no vaccine approved yet.

So let's concentrate on Christmas and it doesn't seem so bad.

[Hayeahnobut]

Makes a good headline, in very few words.

Christmas is on

Is much more appealing than

Hundreds of people are still dying everyday and thousands left with long term health problems

[UniversalHadIt]

Suspect because they want people to spend and clear warehouses (which it is now too late to stock for brexit).

Also suspect that they want us locked down for January so they can ban mass gatherings around Brexit.

We’re in for a really rough few months and civil disobedience will be high on the risk register.

“But you had Christmas and now you have to lock down” will he trotted out.
I wonder whether it will stick when there’s no fresh food in the supermarkets and medicines are in short supply?

[Fancycrackers]

@BeyondMyWits

Distraction therapy... Keep the peasants thinking about Christmas... there will be something coming that they are desperate to hide as always.

This. Bread and circuses again. Just like sodding Eat Out to Help Out. Fed up of this government. Treating the general public like idiots, pushing breadcrumbs to the pigeons rather than proper policies to address any real issues.

[TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince]

Education establishments are now the biggest source of Covid.

What a great idea spreading it round the country as kids visit relatives. Just like the student problem again.

I think the majority of the country are against this. I know l am, and everyone l know is. I do lots of online surveys. In these there’s a massive majority against Xmas ‘opening’

[ComtesseDeSpair]

It isn’t that difficult to understand, surely. The government know full well that public compliance with largely nonsensical rules is fast waning and that the likelihood of the majority complying with a lockdown and seeing nobody over a major public holiday is highly unlikely. More people will be more likely to comply with loosened restrictions and caps on numbers they socialise with.

[Sirzy]

Because he doesn’t want to be compared to Scrooge.

Because he wants to be seen to be giving the public what they want.

Sadly it seems to virus will be having lots to celebrate over Christmas while it spreads amongst families.

[Groundhogdayzz]

Crazy, I don’t know anyone in RL who supports this. Those impacted the worst by covid are the ones who won’t be having a jolly big family Christmas anyway, and will pay the highest price if restrictions are further tightened in January to compensate.

[Hayeahnobut]

Much like all that defence spending

Protect the realm!

appeals much more than

We're spending billions on vanity projects and you're going to be paying it back for decades

[nosswith]

In recent years a lot more has been invested emotionally on 'events' and they have been upscaled. Proposals of marriage have become more elaborate, stag/hen weekends/holidays not an evening, for example. So Christmas as an event is higher up people's list of priorities, especially in a year when other events have been cancelled.

So there is a desire verging on desperation for Christmas to be as near normal as possible.

[TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince]

And l find it really abhorrent in terms of Eid and Diwali.

We live in a multi ethnic country. Why is Christianity more important? Did he do this for Eid and Diwali? Manchester was locked down day before Eid?

Racism.

[Mintjulia]

The UK polices by consent. We aren't China.

So govt have to come up with a policy that most people will accept and abide by. Make it too severe and a dangerous number of people will ignore it. Too lax and Covid will continue to spread out of control. So they have to judge the mood of the population and find a balance that most people will accept.

I don't have an issue with being locked down until Easter but I don't have to deal with domestic violence, I don't have elderly parents that I am desperate to see, I don't have step children or a child away at university. (And the economy would be on its knees if we did that.). The policy has to accept that people are human, they are fallible.

[Lonecatwithkitten]

Distraction from Brexit - 6 days after that we have no idea what will happen. All these ads saying you need to prepare - fo

[Lonecatwithkitten]

For what we have no idea, you can't tell us.

[UniversalHadIt]

@Lonecatwithkitten

Actually you'll find govt have LOTS of ideas of what will happen.

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/831199/20190802_Latest_Yellowhammer_Planning_assumptions_CDL.pdf

Operation Yellowhammer ofc WASNT taking into account the fact that >30% of available warehouse space would be taken up by PPE (most of it govt have admitted is unusable)...

So no, I cant tell you. But govt can, and have, and people are being wilfully very blind.

[UniversalHadIt]

Probably worth reading it with the 6th bulletpoint in mind...

[Bwlch]

Why is Christianity more important?

It's Christmas, not Christianity.

Christmas is celebrated by the vast majority of people in the UK. Most of them non-practising Christians, agnostics or atheists.

[BeaufortScale]

It really stings - I’m preparing for a zoom Hanukkah, after a zoom Passover. Colleagues have missed Diwali and Eid. And we know it will make January worse than it might have been.